Pak intelligence must combat terror rather than have other countries do so: Editorial

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Last Updated: Mon, Nov 19, 2012 10:50 hrs

Pakistani intelligence needs to make a genuine bid to combat terrorism by going after its key perpetrators with full force, rather than opening ways for other countries to do so, according to an editorial in a Pakistani daily.

A year and a half after Osama bin Laden was whisked away from Abbottabad, the US has concluded that there is no evidence that the Government of Pakistan knew of the presence of the Al-Qaeda leader in the garrison town.

The commander of the US Special Operations Command, Navy Admiral William H McRaven, also confirmed at a special summit that Pakistan had not been informed of the raid. Since 2011, when Bin Laden was taken away, there has been debate over whether Islamabad had been hiding knowledge of his presence, the editorial said.

While McRaven's statement clears the civilian government, it raises questions over Pakistan's own intelligence capabilities, the editorial in The Express Tribune said.

For many in Pakistan, it is still hard to believe that no one in the establishment or military knew that Bin Laden was, in fact, residing in Abbottabad, along with his family, it said. Many conjecture the argument that Bin Laden and other key militants were being protected and this will continue to hang in the minds of Pakistanis, given the realities of the country. At an internal level, Pakistan needs to look into any possible support for extremist forces from within its territory, it further stated.

The US security team, which has commented on its own successes against Al-Qaeda, has also commented on the need to build partnerships with other nations to work against terrorism. The challenge for Pakistan must be to prove that it is trustworthy enough to act as a useful partner, the editorial said. (ANI)